April 4th

[Kenneth Yates]

Hey everyone, last night I attended on behalf of the IWW a VCU SDS / EWIU620 meeting to discuss how we could kick start a living wage campaign at VCU.  The AFL-CIO is calling for a day of action in solidarity of public employee's whose collective bargaining rights are under attack on April 4th, the day that MLK Jr. was assassinated while supporting striking public workers in Memphis, TN.  We thought this would be a good day to instead show solidarity with the public workers of VCU and let them know that we appreciate them!  So we are delcaring the week of April 4, 2011 "VCU Workers Appreciation Week!".    To supplement the action proposed for April 4th, we will be handing out leaflets spelling out specifically why we should appreciate these workers and why a campaign to organize for a living wage at VCU is necessary.  We will also draw attention to the issue of outrageous tuitions, and the abuse of Teaching Assistants and the need for more tenured professors and full time adjunct professors.  I will be presenting this at the Richmond IWW meeting Wednesday night for an official endorsement. 



Proposal:  April 4, 2011
Organizers: VCU SDS, Richmond Industrial Workers of the World & the Education Workers Industrial Union 620, & <insert other endorsing groups>

VCU Workers Appreciation!

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, on April 4, 1968, was assassinated in Memphis, TN, where he had gone to stand in solidarity with sanitation workers demanding their own "dream": The right to bargain collectively for a voice at work and a better life. 

On this day, Monday April 4, 2011, we will celebrate King's life by standing in solidarity with public employee's in states such as, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, & even Virginia who's rights as workers are under attack!  However, VCU Students for a Democratic Society, the Richmond Industrial Workers of World & the Education Workers Industrial Union 620, would like to specifically focus on the public employee's of Virginia Commonwealth University!

These hard working women and men are the ones who cook your food in Shafer Dining Hall, they clean the bathrooms and hallways of your dorm, they maintain the sports facilities, the grounds you study on, and the equipment in the libraries and classrooms. They shelve the thousands of books you need to get your degree, teach your classes, coach your favorite teams, and drive the shuttles to make sure you get home safely late at night. 

Let's celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday April 4th by thanking these workers who play an important role in your education at Virginia Commonwealth University. 

Monday April 4th - 11:00am - 2:00pm:
Sign a GIANT 'Thank You' Card for the workers at VCU!

--
Kenneth Yates • x370724 • Organizer • 804.317.1938 • causti...@gmail.com

• Richmond Industrial Workers of the World (R-IWW)
• Richmond Transit Riders Union (RTRU)
• Residents of Public Housing in Richmond Against Mass Eviction (RePHRAME)
• Sustainable East End Development in Church Hill (SEED-CH)
• May Day Richmond, Virginia